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Particle Cannon
Introduction The Particle Cannon is the standard superweapon of all USA generals except Granger. It is basically a particle cannon that fires upwards and can be reflected back to the ground for precision weapon strikes. Overview Since the revival of the Strategic Defense Initiative, this WMD has been accompanying the USA Military to successfully take down enemy bases like God's Heat-Ray. The Particle Cannon is a surface-orbit-surface tactical particle energy-based weapon of mass destruction site which is placed in a rather odd circle and square structure connected via a small rectangle. It is divided into two parts: the control room and the firing port. The control room controls all the activity of the weapon, connects with the reflector satellite and runs systemic checks to ensure the weapon is in good condition. The firing port houses a giant particle cannon blaster that fires a concentrated particle beam in which it will later be reflected by the reflector satellites heat-resistant panels back to a designated target, The satellite can be moved around to chase any escaping units with ease. Thanks to its quick heat dispersal system, the superweapon can quickly reload in just under 5 minutes in order to be used again. The Particle Cannon is, oddly enough, the superweapon which isn't used to cause large scale destruction. It is more often used to destroy high-value targets and act as an ultimate "full range artillery defense structure". One of the tactics using the Particle Cannon is to move the beam opposite to an enemy battalion's direction/move from the enemy units' side or make a temporary deadlock on an entry point so that the enemy can't get close. Offensively, the beam can be used to make a giant hole on enemy defense lines or knock out a row of power plants to render them powerless. Multiple PCs can even at least destroy half of a base if used correctly. The beam can be forced to move faster by double clicking anywhere in the map so that it could overrun faster units. The beam leaves a fire trail after leaving, which is very useful to finish off GLA's buildings by burning the GLA Hole off. It also has the advantage of having the fastest recharge time alongside Tomahawk Storm: 4 minutes reload time per use. However, the Particle Cannon does not have a wide area of effect, so unless the player has multiple of these, the weapon strike from it can be dismissed as a small scar on the opponent's base. Plus, in case the weapon is being captured or should your main base go offline all of a sudden, the particle beam will diminish as the weapon system's safety fuses are tripped to avoid accidents. Also, compared to the vanilla edition of the Particle Cannon, the Contra version is notably less powerful, most likely done in order to balance out the weapon's short recharge time. Alexander, staying true to her defensive doctrine, upgraded the Particle Cannon to make it even more powerful and as available as Rank 3 due to her need for effective defense rapidly. Ironside requested that advanced version for his own use as well. General Leang also has her own variant of Particle Cannon thanks to the technology sharing between the USA and China. It works just like the original PC but with Chinese Aesthetics and a red beam. Assessment Pros: * Strong against anything. * Particle Cannon can be moved while retaining its firepower. * Can overrun enemy units even the MiGs and Raptors when double clicked. * Leaves a trail of fire that deals moderate damage for some time. * Does not cause collateral damage and can be safely used to defend against giant waves of incoming units. Cons: * Very expensive (around 4,000$). * Long build time. * Consumes quite much power (8pts). * Very small area of effect. * If the base power is down when the particle cannon is still active, it will automatically cancel itself with no resuming even after the power is restored. Trivia * The superweapon is obviously referring to the Strategic Defense Initiative, a proposed anti-ballistic plan announced by President Ronald Reagan during the Cold War. * While the particle weapon's existence itself would be perfectly possible, the way it is described in the game - surface-orbit-surface weapon - is completely unrealistic. It is impossible to reflect a particle beam by "mirrors" on satellite; while charged particle beams could be reflected by magnetic fields, electrostatic repulsion of equally charged particles make the charged particle beams disperse fast in space, thus limiting their use for atmospheric-only conditions. And neutral particle beams could not be used in atmosphere, being strictly vacuum weapon. On the other hand, a surface-space-surface array is perfectly suited for lasers. See also * Leang's Particle Cannon Gallery Leang's Particle Cannon.png|General Leang's Particle Cannon, with a notable Chinese aesthetic design. A1.png|Particle Cannon's Effect CTR Particle Cannon icon.png|Particle Cannon cameo Category:USA Arsenals Category:USA Structures Category:Super Weapon